


Fire and Ice

by Adonria



Category: Warcraft - All Media Types, World of Warcraft
Genre: BDSM, Diplomacy, F/M, Hate Sex, Hurt/Comfort, Love/Hate, Sort-of-not-really BDSM
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-14
Updated: 2017-02-14
Packaged: 2018-09-24 06:54:45
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 7,891
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9709220
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Adonria/pseuds/Adonria
Summary: Aethas Sunreaver has been given the impossible task of making Jaina Proudmoore forgive him and return to the Kirin Tor.  He's been instructed to do whatever it takes to give the lady what she wants... but what does she want?





	1. Chapter 1

Aethas Sunreaver was not often at a loss for words.  

“You can’t be serious,” he finally said flatly.

“Deadly serious,” Archmage Khadgar answered him, his gaze steady. “She needs an apology, and she needs it from someone who wronged her.  Since the most egregious candidate is dead, you would be the next in line.”

“She tried to have me  _ executed.  _ Killed. She locked us up and had us wait for death.”

“Because you and your organization betrayed her,” Khadgar said. “She saw you as a threat to her city.  Given all that has happened to her, did you really expect her not to respond?”

“In the first place, I did not betray her. It was a renegade band of Sunreavers who-”

“Stole a potential weapon of mass destruction on behalf of Garrosh Hellscream, which you knew about, and did nothing to stop.”

“And did you expect me to go against the will of Hellscream, inviting certain death for my people? Which brings me to my second point.  She is hardly the only one who has had losses, hardly the only one who has seen their city destroyed and their lives ruined.  Why are we walking on eggshells around her?”

“Because we need her,” Khadgar said. “Because her losses may not be the only ones experienced, but they are still devastating.  They leave her vulnerable. We have all seen what vulnerability to suggestion and loss of hope can do to people.  A vulnerable and angry Jaina Proudmoore is the last thing that this planet needs right now.”

“You act as though she is the most powerful mage on Azeroth,” Aethas muttered.  _ And she may very well be,  _ he thought, but was not about to say.

“You have seen her power.  She almost obliterated Orgrimmar.  Do you wish to allow her rage to build to that point again?” Khadgar said, his voice lowering.

“So we need a loose cannon. Is that what you’re telling me?”

Khadgar shook his head. “I have no time for this argument. I have been spending my days convincing scores of mercenary adventurers that they are the One True Savior of Azeroth, and coordinating others to maintain that lie, just so that I have boots on the ground.  You would think they would realize by now that they are all carrying replica weapons and holding identical titles of leadership, and yet, they come back for more every day.”

“Yes, I have been a bit busy myself with the fire mages,” Aethas replied. “By the way, Lyandra Sunstrider is asking for an increase in pay. She says that acting out her own death all day long causes undue psychological stress.”

“Give her whatever she wants,” Khadgar said, waving a hand dismissively. “We’ve already buggered the economy thoroughly, what’s a bit more conjured gold to us?  Back to the matter at hand.  I have tried apologies.  I have tried pleading.  She will not answer my letters.  I would not ask this of you if there were another way, but we are running out of options.”

“And Kalec?” Aethas raised an eyebrow.

Khadgar shook his head again.  “He won’t even speak of her. I doubt he knows her whereabouts, and I would rather not get involved.”

“If he does not know her whereabouts, exactly how am I supposed to find her?”

“We have a lead,” Khadgar said. “A lead from a somewhat unlikely source, but the most reliable one we have.” He pushed a map in Aethas’s direction. “I would urge you to depart for Orgrimmar immediately after sundown. Whatever it takes, get her to come back with you. You are our best hope, hero.”

“Fuck you, Khadgar,” Aethas muttered under his breath, but took the map and turned to go.


	2. Chapter 2

Jaina had lost track of how many bottles of wine she had drunk, but she did know that she had no more in her bag.  She considered conjuring a relaxing cup of tea to clear her mind, but dismissed the thought, and continued rummaging until she found a flask of rum.  _ Appropriate for a leader of sailors,  _ she thought.  _ Although my sailors are no more. _

The rum burned as it poured down her throat too quickly.  Jaina found her vision growing hazier as she continued to gaze out into the water, the pink glow of mana persisting in her peripheral vision, though she could not bear to look. The glow had faded slightly from the ruins of her city, but it would never disappear, and it was only by some miracle that Tidefury Cove had been spared. If Jaina were thinking clearly, she might have worried about continued exposure to mana by spending so much time on this beach.

Jaina rarely thought clearly these days.

“I need a good fuck,” she muttered to no one in particular.  That was unlikely to happen.  Her thoughts turned, unbidden, to the pale hand of Kalec. The hand that stroked her face, wound through her hair, glided over her body on so many moonlight nights. The hand that reached between her legs and brought her to heights of pleasure that she had not known, may never know again.  

She could not see it, but she knew that hand was betraying her somewhere in the Broken Isles. Not on another lover, no.  Worse than that.  

The hand she loved... the  _ man _ she loved... was working beside the Horde.

The glow was suddenly obscured by a shadow at her side.  _ Who in the hell…? _

“I should kill you where you stand,” Jaina snarled as she looked up at Aethas, then sprang to her feet. Or, at least, intended to spring to her feet; the wine and the rum caused her balance to falter, and she stumbled in the sand.  Aethas reached out by reflex to steady Jaina, and she jerked back, completing her topple to the ground with an undignified thump.

***

Aethas sat down beside Jaina, and she glared at him as she brushed the sand off her robe, then looked away.  “You could kill me,” he said. “But in your current condition, you may very well end up killing us both.”

Jaina did not look at him, did not reply.  Aethas was suddenly struck with pity for her, not just for her losses, not just for seeing one of the world’s most powerful mages reduced to a drunken mess. What brought him to pity was the way she looked as she gazed out into the water, with the almost imperceptible shrug that she gave at his words.  

_ Killing herself as well as me probably doesn’t seem like a bad idea to her right now,  _ he thought.

“Anyway,” he continued, “I am unarmed. It’s not your style to attack in such circumstances.”

“You and I know damn well that mages are never unarmed,” Jaina said.  “And what the hell would you know about my style?”

“You forget, my lady, we once worked together.  Closely, one might say.”

“I am not your lady,” Jaina slurred. “I am no one’s lady.”

“Forgive me.  It was just a pleasantry,” Aethas said.

“A pleasantry?” Jaina laughed bitterly. “Why the fuck are you here, Sunreaver?  I am in no mood for pleasantries from you.  I never want to see your face again.  Not that anyone ever sees your face.”

“You’ve seen my face,” Aethas said quietly.   _ In the Violet Hold as I waited to die. In Orgrimmar as we deposed a dictator.  _ He did not voice these thoughts, wondering if the memories would come to her without the reminder.  

Jaina continued to stare out into the water, refusing to look at him.  Aethas hesitated a moment, then reached up and unfastened his helm. Long red hair tumbled down past his shoulders as he lifted the helm and placed it on the sand next to him. “You may not want to see it again, but here I am.”

Curiosity seemed to overcome Jaina, and she glanced over at him. “You have scars,” she said flatly.

“Quel’thalas,” he said. “Our healers were overrun. Those who weren’t killed or converted were too busy tending to the dying to worry about some vain mage’s skin.” Jaina did not have an immediate reply to that, and Aethas wondered if she was thinking of Arthas. Not that any of it was her fault, of course. It was no one’s fault except…

“Jaina, Azeroth needs you,” Aethas began. “The Legion is not letting up. We are close to the end of everything.  After all that we’ve done - after all that  _ you’ve  _ done - to save our world, we can’t let it slip away.”

“After all that I’ve done,” Jaina said, shaking her head and turning away again. “All that I’ve done has gotten me… what?  Fucked over, that’s what.  Everything I have is gone. My father. My best friends. Everyone I’ve loved. My city…”

“A terrible thing to lose one’s home, isn’t it?” Aethas murmured.  

Jaina snorted. “Don’t even try it. Don’t try to invite me to compare scars, to pretend you understand me.”

“I understand your anger,” Aethas said, and was surprised to hear truth in his own words. “I was angry at everyone, at anyone, after the Scourge obliterated my home. Everyone thinks that blood elves are haughty and cold, but scratch the surface of any of us, and you’ll find that anger. We speak of fire for good reason.”

Jaina was quiet for a moment. “Do you know what the difference is, Sunreaver?”  She chuckled bitterly.  “The difference is, nobody expected you to forgive the Scourge for the greater good.”

Aethas winced. “Fair point. But it was not only the Scourge I was angry with. I was angry with the humans for not giving us more warning or assistance.  I was angry with Kael’thas for not being there. I was angry with our leaders for…” He trailed off. 

“For not surviving?”  Jaina said. “As if they had a choice?”

“I’m not only talking about those who were lost,” Aethas said. “I was angry at those who survived. Angriest at myself for surviving.”

“That doesn’t sound at all like an elf to me,” Jaina said. “You are  _ all  _ about survival. All about continuing your  _ superior _ people.  And to hell with anyone who gets in your way.”

“Don’t you think that’s true of everyone?” Aethas said, brow furrowed. “Azeroth should have been exterminated several times over by now.  And yet we fight on. But it does no good if we fight one another.”

“The Legion did not blow up my city,” Jaina snarled. “The Legion did not humiliate me by working with my enemy to undermine my leadership.  The Legion-”

“The Legion killed your king,” Aethas said.  “I know you want to blame the Horde for it, but I assure you, that was not our doing.”

“You abandoned us,” Jaina said. “You gave Varian no choice but to sacrifice himself. That bitch Sylvanas turned on us to save her own neck, and your useless Warchief-”

“Was a bit busy dying,” Aethas spat, diplomacy falling away briefly. “And what did you do on the Broken Shore that gives you the right to judge the Horde for doing what they had to do to survive?”

“Oh, my God, at least I was  _ there,  _ you son of a bitch!” Jaina cried, throwing her hands up in the air.

Aethas sighed. “That was unfair of me. Forgive me, Jaina,” he said quietly.  _ This is going well,  _ he thought, staring out at the waves.


	3. Chapter 3

Jaina shook her flask and found it empty.  She chucked it aside in disgust, then looked in her bag.  _ Ugh… Kungaloosh.  Well, whatever it takes. _

“If you’re waiting for me to offer you some, then you’re going to be waiting a long time,” she slurred, feeling Aethas’s eyes staring probingly at her.

“I’m quite all right, thank you,” Aethas said. “I haven’t had Kungaloosh since a particularly bad night during the Northrend campaign. That is what you’re drinking, isn’t it?”

Jaina coughed, then gagged slightly as she tried to swallow a sour gulp. “Aged to perfection,” she muttered, taking a smaller sip.

“I meant what I just said, Jaina,” Aethas said. “I am sincerely asking for your forgiveness.”

“There’s nothing sincere about you, Sunreaver,” Jaina replied. “You are nothing but a slick shell of ambitiousness who will say anything to get power.  You have always been that way.  And the Kirin Tor fell for it.  I’m not going to.”

“Yet you’re still here listening to me,” Aethas said. 

_ True,  _ Jaina thought.  _ Why am I not leaving? _

“It is on behalf of the Kirin Tor that I am here,” he continued. “I am not here to apologize for all of the sins of the Horde, but merely for whatever part I may be playing in keeping you away from Dalaran.”

“You’re sorry if my feelings were hurt,” Jaina said. “Is that what you’re saying? That’s not an apology.”

“No,” Aethas said, sounding uncharacteristically flustered. “I am merely trying to say that your value to the Kirin Tor is far greater than whatever hurt may still exist between us -”

“And you get to decide that?” she snarled. “You made your decision when you humiliated me in my own city by collaborating with Hellscream.  You made your decision when you came crawling back like a worm to the Kirin Tor after you had been expelled. And the Kirin Tor made its decision.  Go back to them and tell Khadgar to go fuck himself.”

Aethas muttered something under his breath in Thalassian that sounded like  _ already did that, _ then sighed.  “What can I do, Jaina?”

“Resign from the Kirin Tor and get out of Dalaran.”

“Aside from that.”

“Throw yourself into the sea.”

“Tempting, but no.”

“Fuck off and leave me alone forever.”

“I promise you, you will never have to speak to me again if you come back to Dalaran. I can coordinate with the others on the Council.”

“You are wasting my time,” Jaina said, attempting to stand up again. “I will never forgive you, Sunreaver.  I trusted you once.  Never again.”

“I know you think that I coordinated the operation to steal the Divine Bell -”

“Think?” Jaina snarled. “I know you did.”  _ Do I really, though? _

“I assure you, once more, that I did not. Hellscream recruited a group of my people to carry it out, but I didn’t know about it.”

“You’re lying,” Jaina said.

“You’re right.”

Jaina’s mind reeled momentarily.  _ What the hell did he just say?  _ “I’m right?”

“Somewhat,” Aethas said, bowing his head. “I did not coordinate the taking of the Bell.  I did not participate in the theft. I did not know about the plan until after it was underway.”

“But you did know about it.”

“Jaina, I know you do not want to see eye to eye with me. But… think about it. Hellscream was not only a threat to the Alliance. He was threatening anyone who wasn’t an orc. He may not have enlisted me to carry out his orders, but if they were not carried out, whose head would have rolled?”

“And you don’t think the Kirin Tor would have protected you?”

“I’m not talking about myself personally,” Aethas said. “I’m talking about my people. You are right; we are focused on survival. We have made some questionable choices in that regard.  But I had a split second to decide whether to put up resistance to Hellscream.”

“And you were too weak to do so.”

“It was not weakness,” Aethas said unconvincingly.  “It was the strength my people needed.  Your people from Theramore -”

“Don’t you dare bring Theramore up again!” Jaina said, the pressure of tears burning behind her eyes.  _ I will not cry.  I will not give him the pleasure.  I will not... _

“What happened to your city was terrible,” Aethas said.  “What happened to the survivors that Hellscream captured was barbaric.  There was a reason why the Horde banded together to overthrow Hellscream.  Perhaps too late.  But, don’t you see, Jaina?  The people - your people - who survived Theramore and are out there building new lives… if they needed you, you would do anything for them, wouldn’t you?”

Jaina couldn’t speak momentarily.   _ Of course,  _ she thought.  

“You call me ambitious,” Aethas said. “It’s fair. But my greatest ambition has been to save my people and restore some of what we once were. Azeroth needs you, Jaina. But it also needs me. It needs the Kirin Tor.  It needs the Alliance, and yes, it needs the Horde.  It needs all the help it can get right now.”  He stood up, and held out his hand. “Come back with me. Please.”

Jaina stared up at him, her muscles tensing in resistance. She couldn’t take his hand. She couldn’t forgive. She trusted these people too many times, and was proven a fool every single time.  She wouldn’t do it again. She… 

...she wanted so badly to reach for his hand.

Suddenly, the breeze that had been blowing by the water turned into a howling wind, and with a boom of thunder, the sky opened up as sheets of rain cascaded down on them. “Shit!” Jaina swore, finally finding her way to her feet and grabbing her bag. Before she could right herself completely and open up a portal, however, she felt a warm hand on her shoulder.

“Come with me,” Aethas said urgently. “I saw shelter further up the beach.”  His hand slid down her arm and grasped hers, and without fully understanding why, she allowed herself to be pulled in the direction of the hut he was gesturing toward.


	4. Chapter 4

“I hope we are not intruding on some poor peon’s family home,” Aethas said as he lit a fire in the hearth in front of him.

Jaina shook her head.  “No,” she said.  “I’ve been here before.  It’s abandoned.”  Perhaps it was his imagination, but Aethas could have sworn her eyes swung briefly to the straw bed at the side of the room.  

_ Intriguing,  _ he thought.  _ Perhaps the rumors about secret meetings with the former Warchief are true after all.   _

Or perhaps his mind was going places that it should not for other reasons. 

Reasons related to the way her white robes turned inconveniently clingy and transparent in the deluge outside, the way her breasts rose and fell as she caught her breath from their run.    

Reasons related to her blue eyes, still flashing with anger… with fear… with life.

Reasons related to her peach skin flushing with warmth from the fire and the alcohol, with her wet blonde hair framing her face, her lips…

Aethas blinked.  _ Are you out of your fucking mind, Sunreaver?  _

Quickly, he whipped the cape from around his shoulders and offered it to her.  “You look cold,” he said flatly.   _ Please cover up, _ he mentally added.

Jaina took it from him and wrapped it around her shoulders, scooting toward the fire. She waved her hands a few times, frowning. 

“Still trying to kill me?” Aethas said, trying to keep his voice light.

“Trying to conjure tea,” she muttered, still moving her hands.  “How fucking drunk am I that I can’t manage it?”

“I think I can help with this situation,” he said, reaching into his robe and pulling out a container of liquid. He heated it with a wave of his hand, then presented it to her.  “Blackrock coffee.  I usually drink it cold, but it’s also drinkable while hot.  It sobers you up instantly, which is useful in certain diplomatic scenarios.”

She eyed the container warily. “You expect me to drink something you’re offering me?”

“You don’t think it’s poisoned, do you?” Aethas frowned. “Jaina, I understand that you don’t trust me, but how could I possibly benefit from your demise?”

“Maybe it would be better to find me dead than to admit your failure in convincing me to return to the Kirin Tor?”

“I don’t intend to fail,” Aethas said. “But if it makes you feel better…” He took a sip of the bitter liquid, feeling the remaining chill from the outside leave him. “There. No poison. If I wanted you dead, it would be much easier to leave you drunk.  As nobody on Azeroth aside from the Legion would benefit from your death, I would much rather have you alive, and well, and sober.” He held out the container again.

Still eyeing him suspiciously, Jaina took the drink, then sipped it cautiously.  “The Horde would benefit from my death,” she said, blinking as her mind seemed to clear. “Even if no one believes it, I am serious.  I will spend my days making them pay for their crimes even if the rest of the Alliance won’t cooperate.”

“Oh, Genn Greymane might want to help you out,” Aethas said with a shrug. “But I still maintain that would be counterproductive. I believe, deep down, you know that to be true.  Otherwise, I wouldn’t have found you so close to Orgrimmar, doing nothing but drinking and stewing.  You wouldn’t have listened to me at all.  You wouldn’t have followed me into this hut. You wouldn’t be sitting here right now.”

“And now that I’m sober, I am not going to be sitting here any longer.”  She stood up, reaching for her bag.  “Out of professional courtesy, I won’t kill you right now.  I’ll let your humiliation when you return to the Council without me be consequence enough.”

_ Humiliation…  _ It was not the first time that Jaina used the word that night. Something inside Aethas stirred, a memory, a sensation.

_ Lor’themar’s breath, hot in his ear, as hands roughly grabbed at his hair and moved to force his head down.  Halduron grabbing him, bending him over the end of the bed. _

_ Take it, you little worm… beg for it…  _

“So much anger,” Aethas murmured. “It consumes everything else, all senses, and it destroys unless you give it an outlet. Jaina… I have an idea.”

***

_ Why am I not leaving?  _ Jaina thought.  _ I have a hearthstone. I can port anywhere. I’m sober enough to walk out.  Why am I giving him another chance to bullshit me? _

“An idea about what?”  

_ Why is he staring at me?  What… he’s not… no… _

Red robes swished as Aethas crossed the room, then pulled Jaina into his arms and claimed her mouth in a hot, probing kiss.  

***

_ Is she... responding?  _ Aethas thought distantly, though coherent thought was quickly leaving him as he pressed his body into hers, let his hands wander up into her hair.  _ Is her tongue really in my mouth?  I was just trying to focus her anger… ah, here we go,  _ he thought as she pushed him away and slapped him soundly across the face.   _ That’s what I expected. _

“What the fuck do you think you’re  _ doing?”  _ Jaina screeched, waving her hand and encasing him in a layer of frost.  _ And I probably should have expected that,  _ he thought.  __ “Are you suicidal?  I gave you plenty of chances to live. Now you seem to  _ want _ me to kill you.  Defend yourself, you stupid bastard!”

“I suppose I could,” Aethas murmured through clenched lips. “But I want you to let this all out. I can take it, Jaina. You don’t have to let your anger hurt you anymore. Hurt me. Use me. I know you know what I’m talking about.  You’re not a naive maiden.”

“What are you implying?” Jaina hissed.

“Nothing,” Aethas said. “But you are a curious woman. And I’m willing to bet you have read a thing or two about how pain and pleasure can be two sides of the same coin.”

“You think I have time to read stupid Steamy Romance Novels?”

“Everyone does, Jaina,” Aethas said, unable to roll his eyes due to his frozen state but putting the sentiment in his voice. “Even the most intelligent need a mental vacation every once in awhile. The fact that you went there means you do have an idea of what I’m talking about, yes?”

“I’m not one of your elven sluts,” Jaina spat.

“Of course not,” Aethas said. “But I can be yours for tonight.”  He paused.  “I would get down on my knees for you, mistress, but I seem to be frozen in place.”

“Mistress?!? We are  _ not  _ doing this. Not now. Not ever.”

“Anything the lady wants,” he said. “Though if she wanted to leave, she would have done so by now, I would think?”  

***

_ Leave,  _ every logical voice in Jaina’s mind screamed.

_ Stay,  _ a hungry voice purred from somewhere more primal.

Her anger, as it had so many times recently, won.

_ Make. Him. Pay. _

She raised her hand and interrupted her freezing spell.


	5. Chapter 5

“Good,” Aethas murmured, moving his limbs experimentally before lowering himself to the floor. “I’m not very useful as a block of ice.”  He arranged himself on his knees, then put his most beseeching expression on his face.  “Please… Jaina… give me your anger.  Punish me. I deserve it.  I don’t deserve to be in your presence, but now that I am… let me help you.”

Jaina looked down at him. “Let’s see what we have here, then.”  She paused.  “Strip.”

Aethas swallowed hard.  _ Well, this is escalating quickly. _  “If… if that’s what you want…”  He reached for the front of his robes.

“Wait,” Jaina said, holding up a hand. “Don’t move.”  She walked slowly toward him, then circled him, prowling, seeming to assess him.

Suddenly, she bent down toward his face.  “You’re scrawny,” she smirked. “You blood elves like to think you’re muscular, but you do know you’re nothing compared to a human male, right?”

_ Bullshit.  _ “I’m… I’m sure you’re right,” Aethas said, breath ragged.

“You’re so haughty, so superior, but you know what we say about all of you, right?”

_ Lor’themar… Halduron… long nights in the woods…  _ “It’s… not wrong.”

“Do you even have any hair on this body?” She reached out and yanked roughly at his robes, ripping them apart and yanking them down from around his shoulders. “Smooth as a baby.  As a little boy.  But, hmm, what’s this?” Her hand trailed down his abdomen to his silk trousers, and he gasped as her hand cupped around where he had grown rock hard. “Well, well, well. I was going to say you were compensating for something, but… not bad.”

Involuntarily, he arched into her hand, groaning. “Please…”

His groan turned into a squeal of pain as Jaina’s hand clenched and twisted hard. “Did I say you could do that?” She released him and stood up, putting a hand under his chin. “I am in charge here. You will take your pleasure only if I allow you to. And right now, I don’t think I will.”

“Of course,” Aethas gasped. “Only what you allow.”

“We understand each other, then.”  She pointed to a rough support beam of wood tilted diagonally on the other side of the hut.  “Leave your robe on the floor.  Lie face down on that beam.  Arms up toward the wall.”

“Yes, mistress,” he said, getting to his feet, allowing the robe to pool on the floor.  He crossed the hut and arranged himself. “Like this?”

“Just like that,” Jaina replied, rustling through her bag.  After she found whatever she was looking for, she picked up the robe and began to rip it into strips of fabric. “Except..”  _ rip,  _ “don’t…”   _ rip,  _ “call me…”  _ rip,  _ “mistress.”  She set to work tying his arms and legs to the beam, then, satisfied that he was held in place, pulled his head back by his hair.  “Scream if you like,” she hissed in his ear. “It won’t help you now.”

“Wait…” Aethas gasped. “Just one thing.  No spells.  It’s… just… things can get out of control.”

“Are you afraid of me?”

“No… well, yes,” he said. “Anyone should be. But I don’t want you hurting yourself, either.” 

Jaina tilted her head, considering. “All right,” she said, releasing his head and walking behind him. “I don’t need them anyway.”  

_ Crack!   _ Aethas yelped as something lashed the skin on his back unexpectedly.  “It’s been awhile since I’ve used this riding crop,” she muttered. “I always thought it was cruel to the poor horse. But sometimes you have to be a bit cruel, don’t you think?”  _ Crack. Crack. Crack.  _ The lashes came harder, and he could feel sweat… or was it blood?... coursing down his back as Jaina moved lower.  

“You like this, don’t you?” she sneered.  “I can see those hips moving, you pig.  Humping an orcish hut and whimpering like some sort of pathetic schoolboy.  If only the Council of Six could see the great Aethas Sunreaver now.”  She giggled as she hooked her hands around his waistband, pulling the back of his trousers down just enough to expose his ass. “Should I send Khadgar a message?  Offer to port him?  I bet if I crooked my little finger he’d go anywhere in the world right now.  What a fun surprise this would be for him, don’t you think?”

“No!” Aethas yelled quickly, then swallowed. “Unless… unless that’s what you want to do.”  _ He did say whatever it takes, didn’t he?  _

There was a long pause. Uncomfortably long. “There are enough nasty rumors about me floating around as it is,” Jaina finally said, then brought the crop down on his ass as he cried out. “This will be our little secret. You’re good at keeping secrets, aren’t you?”

“Yes, I am,” Aethas replied, or at least he thought he did; he couldn’t be sure. He closed his eyes and felt his consciousness start to float away, felt the fire from the hearth turn into a hazy sense of warmth all over his body, felt everything disappear aside from the sting of the crop, the pounding of his heart, the almost unbearable ache between his legs, and most of all… her. 

Her throaty voice. The heat radiating off her body. Her smell, heady with sea salt. Her skin as it brushed against him, as soft as her words were hard.  He wanted to taste that skin, wanted to see her eyes dance as they gazed into his, wanted to hear her moan and cry out his name.   _ No… this isn’t… this wasn’t what I had in mind… _

Suddenly, he felt something hard and wet probe against his entrance.  “Now what do you think this is?” Jaina’s mocking voice purred in his ear.

“A…  wand?” he whimpered. “But… no spells…”

“I don’t need them,” she repeated, working the wand roughly inside his ass as he shuddered and moaned, his cock nearly bursting at the sensation.  “You’re lucky I had some mana oil on me. I considered going in dry, but you know what?  I don’t think I want to hurt you in that way.”

“You… don’t?” 

“No,” she murmured, then lowered her torso to his back, pressing her body against his as she continued to move the wand in and out of him.  _ When did she take off her robes?   _ “I don’t think I could,” she continued, her heavy breasts with hard nipples sliding against his tender back.  “It would be far more unpleasant for me than it would be for you, anyway.  I want to debase you, I want to humiliate you, but whatever I do to you, you’re just going to get off on it anyway, aren’t you?”

“Jaina… where… where is the other end of that wand?” Aethas gasped.

“Shut the fuck up,” she said, but the hitch in her voice and the swing of her hips against his ass made his eyes fly open in wide realization.  He tried to look back at her, but his head would not turn, and he lay gasping underneath her as her hips moved faster. “I swear I will rip your cock off if you come on that beam,” she snarled.

“You’re not giving me a choice,” he said, his hips moving with hers as she reached up and yanked his hair roughly. “My God, woman, you fuck like a demon.”

“And I bet you would know, wouldn’t you?” she said, grinding against him one last time before abruptly standing up and pulling the wand out of him as he whimpered in protest.  He could feel her body tremble as she reached up and untied his arms, then his legs.  Weakly, Aethas slid to the floor, his cock still hard and tented against the front of his trousers.  He looked up at Jaina, her body glowing with sweat in the firelight as she leaned up against the wall, trying to catch her breath.

“I should leave you like this,” she said, shaking her head.

“It would be a devious act of torture,” he replied. “And what I deserve, no doubt.”

“But not what I deserve.” She lunged forward, and before he could blink, she was rolling him onto his back, yanking at his trousers and pulling them down, grabbing at his cock as it sprang out and swinging a leg over him. She pressed her hands on his shoulders and slammed her hips down, engulfing his cock with her burning hot cunt.

“Can… can I touch you?” Aethas gasped, raising his hands slightly.

“Where do you want to touch me?” Jaina said breathlessly. “Beg for it, you elven slut.”

“I want to touch your breasts,” he said. “Please, let me hold them. They are so fucking amazing.”

She smirked.  “Better than little elf ones?”

“Yes. Please. Just for a moment…”

“All right,” she said, leaning forward as he reached up to caress her. She tossed her hair back as he flicked her nipples, biting her lip slightly and moving her hips faster as he began to knead her flesh.  “Would you like to kiss them?”

“Yes, please.” Aethas pushed himself up slightly and placed his lips around one nipple, suckling, his hands traveling to her waist. Jaina moaned, and the sound made him smile briefly against her breast.

She looked down at him with a glare. “I’m supposed to be punishing you, aren't I?”

“If that's what you want,” Aethas said, releasing her nipple. “You could get off of me right now and get the riding crop. You could call me every nasty name in the book. You could swear vengeance upon me and everyone who has ever associated with me.” 

_ Worst of all, you could walk out of that door and never let me see you again. _

“Anything you want, Jaina,” he continued. “Not enough people have offered you that lately, have they?”

Jaina’s eyes became suspiciously bright, and she turned her head, her face obscured by a curtain of blonde hair. Tentatively, Aethas reached up to stroke her cheek. “Do you want to stop?”

Her hand flew up and caught his wrist. “Not on your life,” she hissed, bringing his hand down to where they were joined. Taking her cue, he worked his long fingers between them and stroked her clit as she rocked her hips, squeezing her muscles around him as he strained for control. 

A moment… an eternity later, Jaina screamed, a guttural, primal cry as her climax came, a warm gush flowing over Aethas’s fingers and cock. His hands reached up for her shoulders, and she allowed him to pull her down to him, holding her close and stroking her hair as they rode her waves together. Before long, he was beyond the point of no return, his hips jerking upward as he exploded inside her pulsing cunt, his strangled cries joining her now fading whimpers. 


	6. Chapter 6

_ Jaina… Jaina…  _ he wasn't sure when her name turned from a chant in his mind to a hoarse whisper from his lips, but to his surprise, it was answered by her own whisper, her lips against his chest.  _ Aethas… Aethas… _

“Aethas… I still hate you,” she murmured.

“Of course you do,” he murmured in reply, placing a kiss on the top of her head.

“This changes nothing,” she mumbled, not leaving his embrace.

“Of course.”

“And this didn't happen.”

“Naturally.” They stayed entwined on the floor, still breathing hard, until Aethas slid a hand under her cheek and gently tilted her head so he could look into her eyes.  _ Anger still flashes… but maybe something else?  _ “May I be so bold as to ask whether it could not happen again sometime?”

Jaina glared at him, but this time, it was a mocking glare, and amusement twitched at the corners of her lips. “Don't press your luck.”

“Pressing my luck seems to have worked out well so far tonight.”

Aethas could no longer resist, and he moved his hand to the back of her neck and pulled her toward him, leaning up to meet her lips with a kiss. His heart leapt when she deepened his tentative start with her tongue dancing against his lips, until they were both moaning, hands running through each other's hair, bodies moving together. His cock, still inside her, twitched back to life, and he forgot all about submission and rolled them both over so that she was on her back beneath him. Pausing for breath, he raised himself up onto his hands, and looked in her eyes, wordlessly seeking permission to continue.

“Your back,” Jaina said suddenly, reaching up to touch the wounds she inflicted. “That has to hurt.”

“I don’t feel a thing,” Aethas said between gritted teeth.

“Are you sure? I mean, I’m not a healer, but maybe…” Her fingers glided over his back, down to his ass, and he felt a cooling rush everywhere she touched him. 

“That helps. Thank you. I have healing potions in the satchel that was in my robe. What used to be my robe, at least. But it can wait, Jaina. Please…”

She glanced over at the straw bed, then nodded toward it. “Over there. It’s more comfortable.”

_ And I bet you would know, wouldn't you?  _ Aethas scrambled to his feet, taking Jaina by the hand and pulling her up. He pulled her into his arms again, and they stumbled to the bed, still kissing, as she muttered token protests under her breath. “Seriously… I don’t forgive you…”

“You can hate me again in the morning,” he said breathlessly as they reached the bed. She lowered herself onto the crude mattress, spreading her legs and pulling him down.

“Don't look at me like that,” she said as he entered her and slowly began to move inside her warm, slick walls.

“Like what?” 

“Like… you think this is something it’s not. Like you want something from me. Like…”

_ Like I want to love you?  _ “Anything you want, Jaina. But there are some things that I cannot help. I suggest you close your eyes if I am making you uncomfortable.”

“I have a better idea,” Jaina muttered. Her hands reached up to the top of shoulders, and she pressed down meaningfully. Needing no further prompt, he withdrew from her, grinding his cock against the mattress as he kissed her neck, her collarbone, her breasts. When he lingered on her nipples, she moved her hands to his head and pushed more forcefully, and he moved back onto his knees, continuing his kisses down her softly rounded abdomen, to the wispy blonde curls between her legs.  _ Interesting feature of the human body,  _ he thought, languidly reaching up to stroke the curls.  _ I could get used to them. _

“Fuck,” he heard her groan as her thighs parted further. “Don't tease me, Sunreaver.”

“Back to my surname, are we?” he mumbled against her cunt. “If that’s what you want, I suppose.” Sliding his fingers to her slit, he parted her lips, then began licking her swollen clit, exploring what made her twitch, what made her moan. He tasted her salty wetness mingled with his own, moving his tongue down to dart around her entrance as his fingers pressed against her clit. He licked hungrily, he sucked her in, his fingers danced as she wriggled beneath him. 

_ I want to see her,  _ a whining voice inside his head pleaded. But he dared not open his eyes to seek the pleasure on her face. Not now. 

Not unless he wanted to frighten her as much as she was beginning to frighten him.

***

“Stay here with me until morning,” Aethas said a while later, sounding as though he were about to doze off.

“I’m too exhausted to move right now anyway,” Jaina said, eyes drooping. “And too exhausted to clean up. We’re all… sticky.”

“Maybe I can fix that,” he murmured, and before she could respond, he had lifted his hand and lazily waved it over their entwined bodies.  A cold splash of water poured onto them, and Jaina yelped in surprise.

“You… fucking…  _ idiot,”  _ she exclaimed, and laughter overtook her.   _ When was the last time I laughed like this?  _

“Sorry,” Aethas said, eyes darting around the room for something to remedy the situation. “Fire was always my specialization.”

“Well, then, turn that one up a notch,” Jaina said, pointing across the room to the hearth. “It’s about to die and I don’t feel like fixing it.”

“As you wish,” he replied, carefully untangling himself from her and moving off the bed to aim a spell across the room. “Don’t want you to get caught in the crossfire.”

“If you start talking like Khadgar, I swear to the Light that I will kill you and have a necromancer resurrect you so that I can kill you again.”

“How many times have you threatened to kill me tonight?” Aethas said, a smile playing on his lips.

“I’ve lost count,” Jaina said, then paused.  “But I suppose only a couple of them were serious.”

“So we have made progress,” he said, climbing back into the bed and wrapping his arms around her. 

“Don’t get cozy,” she muttered, though her head reflexively nestled onto his shoulder. “We’re just huddled together for warmth.”

“If you say so,” he murmured.

“Enjoy this if you must, but it’s not happening again.”

“As you’ve told me several times tonight.”  He released a long breath, then spoke quietly in her ear. “Jaina, come back to Dalaran with me in the morning.”

Jaina rolled her eyes. “Despite what you may have heard, diplomacy through dicking does not work on me.  This was a release, probably a mistake -”

“Not a mistake,” Aethas said, shaking his head and holding her tighter.

“Probably a mistake,” she repeated. “And it changes nothing. It changes nothing about my feelings toward the Horde, it changes nothing about my feelings toward the Kirin Tor.”

“And your feelings toward me?”

Jaina felt her body tense, her mind ache at the question. “I… I’m not answering that,” she said slowly. “You can draw whatever conclusions you want. But don’t expect that you’re going to find a warm welcome the next time you see me.”

“But I will see you,” Aethas said.

“If I return to Dalaran -  _ if  _ \- it will be on my own terms. It will come with a serious conversation with the Council about future decisions.  And it sure as hell will not be on your arm.”

“Fair enough,” he whispered, kissing the top of her head.  She wished he wouldn’t do that.  

She especially wished she wasn’t starting to enjoy it.

“Get some sleep,” she said. “Sunrise will come soon, and we’ll be dry by then.”

“Anything the lady wants,” Aethas said, and she felt his breathing slow beneath her. Soon, he had drifted into slumber.

Jaina remained awake, staring at the fire, trying not to gaze up at his sleeping face… failing.

_ Get a hold of yourself, girl,  _ she thought as her eyes traveled over his delicate features.  _ It was a one night stand. A good fuck, just like you wanted. _

_ A really… really good fuck. _

_ Dammit. _


	7. Chapter 7

Aethas was not entirely surprised to find himself alone in the hut when he awoke, but he was somewhat surprised that Jaina had managed to leave without awakening him. He couldn’t remember the last time he had slept that soundly. It had been years, perhaps. 

Somehow, he had found security in the arms of a woman who wanted him dead…  _ had  _ wanted him dead, just hours before.

He looked in the bed, and then around the room, trying to see if she had left a note, a scrap of parchment, anything at all.  He found nothing but a lone bottle of healing potion by the now dying fire, and the torn, ruined scraps of his clothing now piled neatly beside his small satchel. And… was that…

Aethas barked in surprised laughter.  _ Kungaloosh,  _ he thought, turning the container over in his hands.  _ Aged to perfection.   _ He lifted it to his lips, but couldn’t bring himself to take a drink of the sour smelling liquid.  _ Sentimental enough to leave me a souvenir after all.   _ He placed a lingering kiss on the container, then sighed, and placed it in his satchel.

“At least she left these intact,” he muttered to himself as he picked up his trousers.  They were stained with his blood, their sweat, his… well, they would have to do for now.  He pulled them on, wincing slightly as his wounds reminded him to reach for the healing potion.  The robes were a lost cause, but he was hearthing back to his private chambers, so it wasn’t an issue. Still, the pants were a good precaution.  Porting, even hearthing, could lead to strange places when the caster was distracted.

_ And I am nothing if not distracted right now,  _ he thought as he raised his hands.

***

It was late in the day when Aethas reported to Khadgar’s office.  “Well, look who the saber dragged in,” the Archmage said mildly, looking up from his paperwork. “You missed our scheduled meeting this morning.”

“Apologies,” Aethas said, sitting down carefully in the chair in front of Khadgar’s desk. “I was otherwise indisposed.”

“Hmm,” Khadgar said, looking at him with a piercing gaze.  “You also missed the return of Lady Proudmoore.”

Aethas felt his heart begin to pound in his throat.  “She did return, then?” he asked, trying to maintain a neutral expression. “Did she mention our conversation?”

“Not specifically, but I gather that you did go out on the mission that I gave you last night?”

“Yes,” Aethas nodded. “We… reached an understanding, but it was unclear whether she had decided to return to Dalaran.”

“You must have been very persuasive,” Khadgar said. “I haven’t seen her so at ease since…” A dawning look of realization crossed his face, and a slow smile spread across his lips.  “In quite a while.”

Aethas shifted uncomfortably in his chair. “Good that our conversation was productive. Glad to be of service.”

“Yes, well, onto the next matter.  We sent Lyandra Sunstrider the increase in combat pay that you mentioned, but she sent a new list of grievances in reply.  Might it be possible for you to turn your… considerable diplomatic skills toward reaching a settlement with her?”  Khadgar’s smile was turning into a barely suppressed grin.

Aethas opened his mouth, shut it, then shook his head. “You know what, Archmage, I think I will request that you handle this one,” he muttered, rising from the chair. “If you’ll excuse me, I have some business to attend to elsewhere.”

“Any tips on your style of diplomacy?” Khadgar said, raising an eyebrow.

“Figure it out yourself,” Aethas called over his shoulder as he walked out the door.

“Perhaps we can compare notes in a few days?”

Aethas shook his head.  “Fuck you, Khadgar,” he muttered under his breath, but this time, there was a smile on his face.


End file.
